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Blaine burglary Stafholt residents and staff receive vaccine turns into highspeed chase, suspects arrested By Ian Haupt
(See Burglary, page 3)
s Good Samaritan Society – Stafholt residents and staff received their first dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine on January 19. See story on page 15. Photo courtesy Tatiana Koreski
Vaccine now offered to people 65 and older By Grace McCarthy Whatcom County Health Department said it would continue prioritizing vaccinating people in Phase 1a, as the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) announced Monday it would expand eligibility to more of the public. Statewide, healthcare workers began vaccinating people over 65 and those 50 and older who live in multigenerational households, which makes up Phase 1b Tier 1. DOH defines a multigenerational household as a home with people from at least two generations, such as a grandparent and grandchild. In a January 18 press conference announcing the start of the vaccination phase, governor Jay Inslee said people 65 and older make up 80 percent of statewide Covid-19 deaths. Previously, Washington had restricted those in Phase 1b Tier 1 to be 70 years or older but changed that to align with CDC guidelines. The change adds nearly 400,000 more Washington residents eligible for the vaccine, according to the governor’s office. The county health department cited vaccine demand exceeding supply in a press release as the reason it would continue its focus on Phase 1a vaccinations.
“There are still Phase 1a employees who want and need vaccination,” said Melissa Morin, Whatcom County Health Department public information officer. “Vaccine providers haven’t been able to vaccinate everyone in Phase 1a yet because they haven’t had enough vaccine to do so. If more shipments come in and more vaccine doses are available, there’s no reason not to vaccinate Phase 1a and Phase 1b Tier 1 concurrently, but that’s not the case right now.” Despite the county continuing to prioritize the Phase 1a group, Morin said enrolled providers in Whatcom County can begin administering the vaccine to people 65 and older. As of last week, DOH had given Whatcom County 9,200 vaccine doses, which could vaccinate about 60 percent of the 16,000 or so people in Phase 1a Tier 1 – high-risk healthcare workers, high-risk first responders, long-term care facility residents and at-risk healthcare workers. Providers are also vaccinating all other healthcare workers to complete the first phase of vaccinations. “Everyone will have the chance to get vaccinated,” said Cindy Hollinsworth, Whatcom County Health Department communicable disease manager, in a press release. “We know vaccination needs to
move faster in our country, our state and our county. We’re doing what we can to speed this along.” Whatcom County undersheriff Doug Chadwick said law enforcement and corrections deputies began receiving the vaccine last week from several healthcare providers. This comes as Washington State Patrol announced January 15 it had started voluntary vaccinations for its employees, although a state patrol spokesperson could not provide information if officers in Whatcom County had been vaccinated. A Blaine Police Department spokesperson (See Vaccine, page 6)
INSIDE
Blaine police officers entered into a high-speed pursuit just after midnight January 13 when three burglary suspects attempted to elude police. Blaine Police Department booked Dillon Wilson, 30, Brandi Sestrom, 36, and Cory Mezo, 36, into Whatcom County Jail on January 13. The trio was charged with second-degree burglary, five counts of theft of a firearm, five counts of unlawful possession of a firearm and felony conspiracy. Wilson, the driver of the vehicle, was also charged with attempting to elude a police vehicle, first-degree robbery and resisting arrest. At 12:27 a.m. January 13, Blaine police officers were dispatched to a commercial burglary at Pantec Mini Storage on Boblett Street where three suspects were seen on security cameras, sergeant Michael Munden said in an email. Officer Tim Richardson arrived first and observed a small black coupe leave the area toward southbound Interstate 5. Richardson stopped the vehicle on I-5 near the on-ramp of exit 275. Richardson turned on his spotlight and saw two males and a female inside the vehicle, which matched the description of those seen in the storage facility. The vehicle fled seconds after Richardson turned on the spotlight, Munden said. Richardson followed, heading south on I-5, and was joined by Whatcom County sheriff’s deputies. According to a Blaine Police Department Facebook post, the vehicle reached speeds of 117 mph. Washington State Patrol and a sheriff’s deputy attempted a stop by setting spike strips on I-5 but the vehicle exited the freeway onto Grandview Road. Police later learned the suspects had a police scanner, which was why they were able to avoid the spike strips. After exiting I-5, the vehicle turned onto a dead-end road after seeing deputies in front of it, Munden said. The small black coupe then got stuck in the mud in front of a residence on Conifer Drive, just north of Ferndale. Mezo, a passenger in the vehicle, attempted to flee but was contacted by a sheriff’s office K-9 unit. He was treated on the scene for minor injuries, and then taken to the PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center ER to treat a small laceration. All three suspects were booked into Whatcom County Jail in the early morning of January 13. Annie Lagerwey, on-site manager for Pantec Mini Storage, said their security
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